20 Years
by bluetheyellowcatdragon
Summary: 20 years have passed since the completion of the Zero Requiem, and the world is peaceful. However, when Blayne McAlistor has an encounter with a mysterious man, the wheels from 20 years before begin to turn again.
1. Encounter

**Hi! Okay, this is my first fic, so it probably won't be that great. I never intended to make an account and publish a story, I was just going to be a nameless lurker who read fan fiction and never reviewed or anything. But, one day I was volunteering in a special education kindergarten room and this idea for a story just hit me (strange place, I know). I just couldn't get it out of my head. So here is my best attempt to get my idea down. Please review, I want to know what you think of my writing, and how I could improve. Oh, and tell me about any typos I may have made and anything that doesn't make sense. Well, here it is!**

**~Blue**

**Warning: Spoilers for the ending of R2**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.**

Chapter One: Encounter

The date is 2038 A.T.B., twenty years after the successful completion of the secret operation that would ensure world peace, the Zero Requiem. The Holy Britannian Empire has released all of the captured territories previously known as "areas" and stopped its quest of world domination under the rule of the beloved Empress Nunnally vi Britannia. Japan, the former Area 11, has a new generation who have never felt the oppression of occupation. Japan has truly become an independent nation, and a vital member of the United Federation of Nations. However, despite the effect the Britannian occupation and wars had had, it was hardly ever mentioned except in hushed voices. In fact, most young Japanese, and even Britannians, had never even seen a picture of Demon Emperor Lelouch vi Britannia.

Eighteen year old Blayne McAlistor was wandering around the back streets of Tokyo. His unruly blonde hair, bright, emerald green eyes, and Ashford Academy uniform set him apart from the rest of the people around him. But Blayne didn't care very much about where he was or how he looked at the moment. He was too busy thinking about how screwed up his life had become lately.

At first glance, Blayne's life was perfect. The only child of high-ranking Britannian nobles, Blayne always had everything he wanted or needed. When he was little, every year his birthday was a huge ordeal, with entertainers and animals and everything in between. He had traveled the world and met many important people, including Britannian Empress Nunnally vi Britannia, her Prime Minister Cornelia li Britannia, and the legendary Zero. As of right now, Blayne was living in Japan with his best friend, Keiji Oghi, son of longstanding Prime Minister of Japan Kaname Oghi. Both young men were popular members of the Ashford student council, with Keiji as president and Blayne as vice president. Yes, Blayne's life certainly seemed perfect.

"But looks can be deceiving, very deceiving," Blayne muttered bitterly. The truth was Blayne's life _was_ perfect. Was, as in had been. He had actually become an only child three months before when his 13 year old sister, Annobel, had died. It really wasn't anyone's fault, but it had been the final straw. Things had already been tense, as the McAlsitors were in jeopardy of losing their title of nobility. That, along with Annobel's death, had made Blayne's parents simply explode at each other. The fighting was nearly constant, and after a while, he couldn't stand it anymore. So, he had escaped to Japan. Of course, Keiji's family had taken him in. Prime Minister Oghi had to be one of the kindest people Blayne knew, and that along with the fact that Oghi was one of the founders of the Black Knights, he could definitely understand how the man had been elected into office for the past 20 years. Villetta Oghi was slightly scarier. She had kept her post as Ashford's gym coach, and also her Britannian Baroness title. That, along with her history as a fierce warrior and skilled Knightmare pilot, made her one of the most respected women in the country, and rest assured her students never talked back and rarely skipped class. Despite this, she was still a kind person, willing to accept Blayne into her home.

Which brought him back to his original problem, the reason why he had come to Japan in the first place: Annobel and his fighting parents. Blayne had always been close to Annobel, or Anna as he called her, so her death had hit him especially hard. She hadn't been in the best of health, so it really wasn't a huge surprise to anyone that she had passed so young. Funny, they could fix a fractured spine and cure paralysis, like in Empress Nunnally's case, but somehow the bigwig scientists still hadn't figured out a cure for cancer. Being noble, Anna had received the best medical care available, but a fat lot of good that did. He wished that he could just go into another world, or at least see something different than reality.

With a groan, Blayne realized where exactly in Tokyo he was. And the fact that he had no idea how to get out of there. Some of the other men on the street were looking at him strangely, and he realized just how out of place he was, a wealthy Britannian walking the grimy underworld of Tokyo. As he reached into his pocket, Blayne realized he had stupidly left his phone at home on his dresser. He quickly turned down a small alleyway, hoping to get some refuge from the stares while he figured out how to get home. "Crap," he muttered under his breath, meaning both his current situation and his life.

"I can help you, you know."

Blayne spun around to face the man behind him who had spoken. The young Britannian man looked to be about his own age. He had appeared out of nowhere, and had, Blayne was reluctant to admit, startled him. He had never seen the guy before in his life, and honestly, he kind of freaked Blayne out. Anyone who could approach the young Britannian, who had been trained in combat, without alerting him was an anomaly. As Blayne looked closer at the young man before him, he realized that the person was also Britannian, not Japanese as he had originally thought.

"Um, no thanks, I think I can get home from here by myself, but thanks for the offer." Blayne turned around and started walking towards the opposite end of the alley.

"Oh, no, Blayne. I wasn't talking about that kind of help."

He spun around, looking at the strange teen. "Who the hell _are_ you?" he demanded. How the heck did this guy know his name? He couldn't be one of his parents' political rivals from the homeland, could he? Oh, crap, this was just looking better and better.

The man completely disregarded the question. "Well, I suppose I could help you get back to the Oghi residence also," he mused. The purple eyed man gave a quick nod, reached into his pocket, and before Blayne could react, pulled out a cell phone and tossed it to him.

"Uhh, thanks, I guess. But how do you know my name and where I live? Just who are you? And what the hell were you talking about earlier when you said you could 'help' me?" Blayne was pissed at this point. Here came this guy, acting as if he knew everything about him! It was just plain creepy. And how the heck did he know, anyway?

"Now, now, Blayne, don't get so worked up. I'm sure Annobel wouldn't like to see her kind, loving big brother this way. May she rest in peace, of course. I truly am sorry for your loss."

Blayne took a shocked step back. This guy knew about Annobel. Only the closest of family friends were told about her passing, and Blayne knew them all, but he sure didn't know who this strange teen was.

"Now, about your questions," the youth continued. "I have many names, some used more than others. As of right now, you don't need to know any of them; that will come another time. As for how I know about you, let's just say I have had my eye on you for a while now. I believe you are the right person to help me."

"I thought you said _you _wanted to help _me_."

"I do. If you agree to help me, it will be helping you at the same time. You want your life back. You want your parents to stop fighting, you want to keep your nobility, and most of all, you want dear little Anna back. You want to escape this world and exist inside of an illusion. You feel like this world, which is supposed to be full of peace, has done its best to destroy yours. You want to reform the world how you believe it should be."

Blayne was shocked. He couldn't move. This complete and utter stranger had just laid bare his innermost thoughts, some of which he hadn't even acknowledged himself. It was true. All of it. Blayne wanted to fix the world that had taken almost everything from him.

"H-how? How did you..." He couldn't even complete the thought.

"How did I know?" The raven haired man smirked. "Believe me when I say I've felt the exact same way. The desire to change the world, all for the sake of a little sister. You don't want those desires to end here, do you? You have a reason for action. If I grant you power, could you go on? I propose a deal. In exchange for this power, you must agree to make my one wish come true. Accept this contract and you accept its conditions. While living in the world of humans, you will live unlike any other: a different providence, a different time, a different life." And to Blayne's utter amazement, the young man before him began to laugh, like he found what he had just said exceedingly funny. "I apologize. It's simply that, many years ago, an accomplice of mine said very similar words to me. Almost identical, in fact. Those words sparked something big, much bigger than she or I, indeed larger than a million people. In fact, that flame is still burning, although many people believe otherwise. But I am here now to finally snuff it out, once and for all. Consider my offer. You don't have to tell me now." The man turned and began walking down the alley.

"W-wait! How will you know when I've decided?" Blayne called out to the man's retreating back.

The violet eyed man raised his arm above his head in a lazy wave. "I'll know, McAlistor." He replied. "I'll know."

Blayne couldn't move as he watched the youth walk away. He couldn't comprehend what had happened. He had been thinking about his life, and how he wished he could change it, or at the very least escape it. Then someone had just shown up and offered him the power to change it. What the hell was that all about? The teen was obviously insane, and escaped from some sort of institution. "Maybe not," the annoying little voice in the back of his mind argued. "He knew your name, and he knew about Annobel." Damn, his subconscious made a good argument. He shrugged. For now, he would forget about it. He would just focus on getting home, and think about the troubling encounter later. Just then, Blayne realized he was still clutching the cell phone in his hand. He quickly used it to call Keiji to come get him, before trying to figure out how to get the phone back to the mysterious person. "Later," he repeated.

**So there it is! The first chapter of 20 Years. It took me forever to write, as my mom is having friends from Chicago come, so I wrote this off and on while cleaning out the dishwasher multiple times, picking up my room, doing laundry, and making a cake. Please review! You'll be my best friend!**


	2. History

**Wow, I can't believe this took me so long to write! I knew what I wanted to say, it just never came out right…. Ah well, here it is, and sorry for the wait! This chapter will pretty much be a recap of the series, and was a little boring to type, but just try and stick it out. It will get much better, I promise! And I think it'll be interesting how the world looks back on the whole rebellion and the reign of Lelouch. So happy reading! And don't forget to review! I jump up and down and do a happy dance every time I get one. I'm serious. **

**~Blue**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Code Geass, I only wish I did.**

Chapter Two: History

Two weeks had passed since Blayne McAlistor's encounter with the mysterious teen in the alleyway. For the most part, Blayne had completely put the matter out of his mind, instead throwing himself into his school work with a zeal that surprised even Keiji Ohgi, his closest friend. He got all of his student council paperwork done on time, if not early, and made it a point to always be surrounded and laughing with friends.

But deep inside, he was watching himself, constantly thinking about what the man had said. He analyzed his every action, realizing he was just trying to force himself to forget. To forget Annobel, his parents, Britannia, and the violet eyed person. To forget by immersing himself not in the past, not in the future, but in the present, feeling nothing but what was directly around him.

Blayne was walking to class with Keiji, talking animatedly. Keiji knew something was wrong, and that his best friend had been acting strangely ever since the day two weeks before, when Blayne had called him and asked for him to come pick him up. "God knows why he was there," Keiji thought to himself before shrugging it off. He knew Blayne would tell him when he was ready. Suddenly, from amid the throngs of students in the hall, Keiji's younger sister, Chigusa Ohgi, appeared.

"Hey Chigusa," Blayne greeted her. "What brings you to this part of the school? Don't you normally stay in the middle school section?"

"As a matter of fact, I do normally stay in the middle school." She rocked back on her heels, humming to herself and nonchalantly inspecting her fingernails for dirt. Chigusa was a miniature version of her mother, right down to the fiery temper, while Keiji looked like his father, but with straight hair.

"Oh, come on, Chigusa! Just tell us what you want already. We don't have all day; we'll be late for class soon!" Keiji generally had a short temper when it came to his infuriating younger sibling.

"Well, if I must," Chigusa sighed. "It's so much fun seeing you sweat, though. Anyway, your next class is History, right?"

"Um, yeah. Why?" Blayne's curiosity was now thoroughly piqued. It really wasn't often the 8th grade girl publicly acknowledged her older brother, as she considered him below her attention. In actuality, though, the two were very close, and bickering was just their preferred way of showing their affection.

"Well, let's just say that class will be very interesting today. Dad told me about it." Chigusa grinned smugly, then twirled and quickly walked away.

"What the hell was that all about?" Keiji asked, bewildered, to no one in particular. "You know what, never mind. I've decided I don't want to know. She was probably just using that as another chance to try and make me believe I'm the least loved and will be thrown out on the street soon." Keiji snorted. "She's such a freak."

"Yeah... sure..." Blayne really didn't know how to respond to that. "It'll probably just be the old bat droning on and on again about how the drought of 1639 affected crop growth or something like that. C'mon, let's get going, we're going to be late."

Both teens rushed down the hall, barely making it to the History lecture hall on time. As they slipped into their seats, they noticed something that was most definitely out of the ordinary. In fact, the entire hall buzzed with whispers as the students noticed the man standing up front with the teacher.

"Wow, for once it looks like Chigusa actually was telling the truth," Keiji commented dryly as he looked at his father. "Wonder what he's here for. I thought he said this morning he had an important meeting this afternoon. It is definitely not normal for the freaking Prime Minister to come to a high school history class."

"Well, I'm honestly not all that surprised," Blayne replied. "You know your dad's horrible at keeping secrets like this, and he had that really weird look he gets when he's trying to hide a surprise from us on his face this morning. He probably only told Chigusa because he couldn't keep it to himself."

"Eh, you're probably right, Genius Boy. We haven't all been trained in the art of reading body language."

"Yeah, sure, whatever." Blayne replied with a smirk. The teacher squawked out a "Settle down, settle down!" and the room fell silent. Everyone wanted to know why exactly the Prime Minister of Japan was in their classroom.

"As you can see, today we have a guest speaker. This is the Advanced History class, and as such, all of you are expected to understand mature subject matters. Today's topic will be the Black Era, the reign of Demon Emperor Lelouch vi Britannia, and the beginning of the Zero Era. As there is so much material to cover, all of you have been excused from the rest of your classes for the day."

Before the teacher could continue, there was an outbreak of muttering from the students.

"Really? The Black Era?"

"Isn't that what they call the time of the Black Rebellion now?"

"Yeah, I think so! They've never really told us anything about it."

"I know! I think my parents are afraid to talk about it, they've only said it was a horrible time to be living in Japan; you never knew when the next battle would start!"

"And the Demon Emperor! The only thing I know about him is his name."

"Exactly! It's like no one even wants to think about it, let alone tell us about it!"

"Well, I'm just glad we live in the Zero Era now, there hasn't been any war for so long!"

"SILENCE!" Everyone stopped their conversations, and looked at the now seething woman. She took a deep breath to calm herself. "_If_ you would be so kind, I would like to continue. Prime Minister Ohgi has been so kind as to agree to tell you not only what happened, but his personal experiences as one of the key members as well. And of course, I expect there to be _no interruptions_, except for _properly_ asked questions. Is that understood?" To a chorus of "Yes, understood", Kaname Ohgi walked to the podium.

"Well to start off, I wouldn't exactly say I was one of the "key" members of those days. I had my job, and I did it. Anyways, I really am overjoyed to be here. One thing to make sure to remember throughout this story is the gravity of it. Millions of people were killed in a mere two year period, and all of us, whether we were involved or not, mourn for their deaths. For this, I think it's best to start from the very beginning." Ohgi took a deep breath before continuing. "Although the actual Black Era took place from 2017-2018 A.T.B., the root of it was without a doubt the Second Pacific War, in which Japan lost its rights to Britannian occupation. Because of this, a significant number of the Japanese people decided to form a resistance, mainly the Japan Liberation Front, but many other small pockets as well. I was at that point the leader of one of those small groups. I had been convinced to join and fight by my best friend at the time, who was almost like a brother to me, but after he died, I took up leadership. We had never pulled any big operations, but one day a call came in for a perfect job. It required a small, dedicated taskforce in our area, and if successful, it would deal a huge blow to the Britannians. We were supposed to steal what we believed was poison gas. Little did we know, that was the start of everything." At this point, Ohgi paused for a brief moment, and gave a quiet chuckle. "Actually, you can thank Shinichiro Tamaki for everything that has happened. He managed to royally screw up the simplest part of the plan, setting the Britannian military on us. However, if that hadn't happened, we would never have been in the trouble we were, and Zero would most likely have never made contact with anyone."

At this, the Ashford Academy students had to laugh. Everyone knew of Shinichiro Tamaki, the legendary political screw-up. For two years, he had attempted to live out his dream of being a politician. However, he had absolutely no negotiating skills, and any problem he tried to fix immediately became 10 times worse. After a while, he finally gave up and opened his own chain of restaurants, which eventually became one of the most popular in Japan.

Once the laughter receded, the Prime Minister continued on. "That day actually became one of the most horrible in Japan's history. In an attempt to get the so-called poison gas, the then third prince of Britannia, Clovis la Britannia, ordered the complete extermination of every Japanese in the Shinjuku Ghetto."

A girl with blonde raised her hand in the air, and asked, "You said the 'so-called' poison gas. What was it really?"

"Don't worry; I'll be getting to that. As I was saying, at that point the Britannians were overrunning the ghetto. We only had one Knightmare, an old Glasgow, which, even though it was piloted by Kallen Kozuki, was no match to the then technologically advanced Sutherlands. This was when Zero made his first miracle happen. He somehow contacted all of us through our communicators, and led us to victory when we only had one Knightmare against an army. Not only that, but he was able to get us a whole shipment of Sutherlands. It seemed like he was unstoppable, but then a new experimental Knightmare, Lancelot, entered the battle piloted by Suzaku Kururugi."

The students began murmuring amongst themselves again, not knowing this name. Everyone knew the legendary Knightmare Frame: Lancelot, known to be one of the strongest Knightmares ever built, and was only able to be defeated by Kallen Kozuki's Guren. Both the Guren and the Lancelot had continued to be upgraded and refined until combat Knightmare production halted after the thirteenth generation. Kallen had continued to pilot the Guren as the Ace of the Black Knights, and the Lancelot had been piloted by Gilbert G.P. Guilford since it had become a tenth generation Knightmare. However, the original pilot's identity had always been kept secret from the newer generations. "Kururugi has perhaps the most peculiar situation in this whole ordeal," Ohgi continued. He knew, of course, that that title actually belonged to Lelouch, but the public was not to know that the hero Zero was not actually the original, and the original was the Demon Emperor. "He was actually the son of Japan's last Prime Minister before the occupation, and as such most people expected him to become part of the resistance and fight to save the country his father loved so much. What he actually did, though, was join the Britannian army as an Honorary Britannian. He was selected to be the test pilot of the Lancelot because he was an Eleven, and the Britannians were unwilling to lose one of their own in the case of a malfunction. Once he appeared, things began to go downhill for us, the rebels. The Elevens living in the ghetto were being slaughtered by the army relentlessly. All hope seemed lost, and then the second miracle of Zero came. A cease-fire order came from the Third Prince of Britannia, Clovis la Britannia. After the Britannians had retreated, my group and I went home, unsure if it was a victory or a loss, and with no idea who had helped us in our darkest hour.

A few days went by, with no mention anywhere of what happened in Shinjuku. Then something shocking happened. It was revealed that shortly after he had given the retreat order, the Third Prince had been murdered. No one knew who had done it, and no one claimed the act. The Britannians needed a scapegoat, and they blamed the murder on none other than Suzaku Kururgi. He was to be tried and executed when Kallen was once again contacted by the mysterious person. He told us to meet him on a train, and he promised to do the impossible: free Suzaku. And he did. He managed to rescue the accused murderer, and at that time revealed that he was the true killer. This was Zero's first appearance to the world, and with the short speech he made, captured its attention. Everyone wanted to know who the mysterious masked man who defied the might of Britannia was. Heh, there were some crazy theories going around: that he was actually a woman, Prince Clovis, or a prince from another country. To this day, we still don't know who Zero is. Even me, who has known him since his debut. After that day, a few more weeks went by until we, the Black Knights, officially announced ourselves. There was the capture of a resort hosting the annual international sakuradite conference. Everyone at the hotel was taken hostage, including the granddaughter of the founder of Ashford Academy, Milly Ashford, who is now a prominent news anchor. The Japan Liberation Front was behind the attack, and when they discovered that Third Princess of Britannia, Euphemia li Britannia, was also among the hostages, they found they had a valuable bargaining chip. The viceroy at the time was current Britannian Prime Minister Cornelia li Britannia, and she loved her little sister dearly. That was when we made our move. Zero took out the leader of the attackers, and the rest of us got the hostages safely onto boats away from the resort. We then announced ourselves as the Black Knights, knights for justice, with Zero as our leader. We would assist anyone who was being treated unfairly, whether they were Britannian or a number."

Once again, Ohgi paused and showed video footage of what happened. The students were all enthralled by the story, finally learning the origins of things they took to be part of everyday life. This was without a doubt the greatest history lesson to date.

"I don't- and won't- ever regret being one of the members of the Black Knights. We helped a great number of people, and we gained the attention of the Six Houses of Kyoto, which was an enormous feat back then. We had new members signing up every day, even a few Britannians. However, there were some moments when I must say I was... less than proud to be one of the Black Knights. Perhaps the most prominent of these was the Narita incident. We were supposed to have been taking down the Britannian forces that were coming to destroy the remnants of the Japan Liberation Front that were hiding out in the area. All in all, that part of the mission was a success, and we were able to gain important allies, most notably the Four Holy Swords, but at a great cost. You see, the maneuver we used to bring down the Britannain forces was a giant landslide, but it overran our calculations and destroyed the city. A great number of civilians were killed that day, which was the exact opposite of our goal. We were all upset over the outcome of that day, but we went on. Now, to answer your question about what was actually in the capsule from that first day in Shinjuku." Ohgi nodded towards the blond girl from earlier. "It was around this time we adopted our new roster of official commanders. I was made deputy commander, Tamaki was the head of the second special squadron, and Kallen was the head of Zero's personal squad. Rakshata Chawla, an Indian Knightmare designer and creator of the Guren Mk-II, was named head of research and development, and still is today. Then there was Diethard Ried, a Britannian who had gained Zero's trust. He had been part of a Britannian news station, but when Zero made his appearance Diethard decided to join the Black Knights. Those were our core members, but there was always one other person around the control center. To this day, I'm still not entirely sure who she was. Her name was C.C., and she was the one inside the capsule. She had been experimented on by a secret branch of the Britannian military, but seemed to be an ordinary woman. She really had no active role in the Black Knights, she was simply Zero's confidante and when we needed it, a pilot. In fact, she really isn't even worth mentioning, except for the fact she was the one who was in the capsule."

These unfamiliar names made Blayne mutter to Keiji, "Know anything about these people?"

Keiji whispered back to Blayne, "Well, I know most of them, but Diethard Ried and the girl he mentioned, C.C., are new to me."

"Wait, you haven't met them? I thought you knew all of your dad's old war buddies?" Blayne whispered back.

"Well, yeah, I do know some of them. Like Rakshata for example. She is one crazy woman. She goes around with this 'I'm so much better than you' attitude and she never lets go of her pipe. It's supposedly tobacco that she's smoking, but I wonder what's really in there, if you get what I'm saying. Anyway, I met her at one of those things my mom is always hosting. But shut up, Blayne. I want to hear this!" He looked at his father, who was continuing his presentation.

"We continued to clash with Britannia several times, during one of which it was revealed Suzaku Kururugi was the pilot of the Lancelot. This shocked everyone, as it was unheard of for a number to be a knight, let alone one with such an important position. Soon after that revelation, Kururugi became the personal knight of Princess Euphemia. As you can imagine, this caused an enormous uproar among the Britannians. At the time, the royal policy was that the numbers were to be discriminated against at all costs, supposedly proving Britannian supremacy. But the unrest was nothing compared to what came next. What occurred was perhaps the biggest tragedy in the entire Black Era: the disaster of the Specially Administrated Zone. Although this pales in comparison to the Demon Emperor's reign, it is still one of history's worst moments. It was during Ashford Academy's annual school festival. Princess Euphemia, who had been beloved by Britannians and numbers alike for her fair treatment, made a declaration. The Specially Administrated Zone of Japan. It was promised to be a place where we Japanese could get our rights back. We would be allowed to call ourselves Japanese, not Elevens, for the first time since the war. Japanese would have the same rights as Britannians, all of us equal citizens. It sounded too good to be true, but there it was. Without a thought, thousands of Elevens signed up to participate. They wanted the freedom they had been deprived of so badly they would have done anything to have it. But it was all a trick. At the opening ceremonies, Princess Euphemia came out, supposedly to officially open the Zone. In reality, she came to order the murder of every person calling themselves Japanese. She took out a gun, and started shooting. So many people were killed that day... I'm sorry, the pain and anger of that day still get to me. I'm just glad Zero was able to stop it where it was. He alone had anticipated the trick. He was only able to stop Princess Massacre Euphemia by killing her in the end, which saved the lives of thousands of innocent people.

Ohgi turned on the projector next to him. "If any of you have weak stomachs, I would advise you to not watch," he said as he started playing clips of the day he had just described to them. Blayne for one was shocked. He was a Britannian, through and through, and a noble at that. He had always taken pride in that fact. Now, he was not so sure. As he watched scenes of Britannian soldiers mercilessly slaughtering innocent civilians, he was extremely glad he was living in the reformed Britannia, not the barbaric version of twenty years before.

After the video finished, the Prime Minister had to pause in order to swallow past the lump in his throat. The students assumed it was because the memory was so horrible for him. _"But that's not it at all," _he thought bitterly. He was one of the few people in the world who was aware of the true happenings of that day, and that Euphemia's intentions were honest and pure. The world would never be able to know of the existence of Geass, that horrible power that had brought so many to their deaths. But what was even worse than sullying the name of one of the most open and kind people the world had ever seen was glorifying the name of its worst nightmare. Ohgi knew that if any kind of order was to be maintained in the world, no one, absolutely no one, could know that Lelouch vi Britannia had been the original Zero. Only the people who had been high members of the Black Knights or Britannia knew. For everyone else in the world, as far as they knew, there had been only one Zero the entire time. But even now, twenty years after he appeared, Kaname still didn't know who the new Zero was. He had a sneaking suspicion that Kallen knew, but he would respect her decisions. He trusted Zero, and the man had rid the world of the greatest evil it had known.

He snapped out of his reverie, and gave a light chuckle. "Heh, sorry. I got kind of lost in my thoughts there. I know it's strange, but that's how Britannia was back then. Prime Minister Cornelia, who is now a close friend of mine, was one of my greatest enemies, and was the most ruthless soldier Britannia had. Things have changed so much since then, be grateful you don't have to experience the horrible times we used to live in. Continuing now, after Euphemia's Massacre, the Japanese people were so angry a huge number of people started convening in on Tokyo, led under the Black Knights. The Britannians were starting to panic, and we all thought we had a really good shot of winning this battle and independence for our nation. When the moment came, Zero had set up a system malfunction of the settlement itself, giving us the opening we needed to attack. We quickly seized a strategic base- ironically, it was here, at the academy. We made it our temporary headquarters for a few reasons: it's a large complex where we had room for everyone, and there were students here so the army wouldn't risk injuring them at the same time as us, and we also simply didn't want the students hurt. Kallen was a student here at the time; she was a member of the student council, actually, and had many friends here that she didn't want to see hurt. Actually, that's how she got them... well not to trust us, but to at least believe we wouldn't shoot them the first chance we got. Up until then, Kallen had been living a double life. All of her school friends thought she was a Britannian just like them, but in actuality, Kallen was half Japanese and the pilot of the Guren Mk-II. She was willing to reveal herself to them and risk them hating her. As such, we officially had Ashford Academy under our control. The First Battle for Tokyo was starting. I, however, was unable to participate due to certain... personal... reasons." The Prime Minister of Japan grimaced and rubbed his stomach unconsciously.

"Yeah, 'cause your mom freaking shot him," Blayne sniggered to Keiji. Most of the students were too engrossed in the history lesson to notice the man's momentary twinge of discomfort at the memory, and those who had were confused. Blayne and Keiji, on the other hand, knew exactly what Ohgi was thinking of, as they had been told the story several times of how Viletta had shot her future husband in the stomach during one of the most crucial battles of the Black Era. Keiji replied back, "Yeah, you know better than most my mom's a scaaary woman when she's pissed. And seeing how xenophobic she used to be, it's no surprise she thought the simplest way to get rid of him was to kill him. Another reason to never make her angry, as if we needed one." With a final snort, the two teens turned their attention back to the front of the room.

"That fight really showed how far we had come in such a short time. That first day, we could barely hold our own against a small force. Now we were winning against the entire Britannian army, who had their best commanders out against us. We tasted victory. It was _right there._ Then at the crucial moment, Zero vanished. He gave one last communiqué saying that Kyoshiro Todoh was in charge, and then flew off in his Knightmare. Kallen followed him, to try and find out what was going on; she never told us what exactly happened; only that she watched as Zero and Suzaku Kururugi had a confrontation, which ended in Zero's capture. His sudden disappearance cost us the battle, and the vast majority of us were captured, myself included. The only ones they didn't get were Kallen, Diethard, Rakshata, C.C., and Kosetsu Urabe, one of the Four Holy Swords. I really can't tell you how horrible those first few days were. Britannia announced that Zero was dead, causing us to lose hope. A few of Zero's most loyal followers, like Tamaki, insisted that Zero wasn't dead, he couldn't be dead. He kept ranting on and on about how Zero was invincible, he would never betray us, he would come and rescue us soon. The rest of us... were not so loyal. We became bitter, angry Zero had ever charmed his way into leading us into a hopeless battle we could never win. He had never even shown us his face, and had admitted to us that he was not Japanese. For all we knew, Zero could've been working for Britannia, sent to simply give the world hope, only to have it strategically crushed so Britannia could expand their empire even further in the aftermath. But even so, deep down, we all still believed. We believed in the legend that Zero had become, and were loath to let go of that last, final spark that maybe, someday, Zero would make his miraculous return and free us, proving that we were not simply pawns in his game, but trusted allies. For an entire year, I lived like this, held captive in a tiny prison cell, treated like a criminal, and the only way to pass the time was to talk with my fellow members of the Black Knights about whether or not Zero truly betrayed us. It was... a grim situation, to say the least. Of course, we were not the only ones punished. As the entire country had followed the Black Knights' example, Area 11 was downgraded to a disciplinary level in order to 'educate' us and teach us our place in the world. Executions happened daily, and the once-proud people were treated like dogs."

Everyone in the room was enraptured, even the teacher. She had taught this lesson, said these same words, but she had never in her life heard about the awful time with such raw emotion. For the students who were hearing this for the first time, it was incredible, in a horrible, wonderful way. Even for those who had more of an idea of what had happened, such as Blayne and Keiji, it was an experience to learn more details.

A boy with short brown hair put his hand in the air. "I heard Coach Viletta say once that she first came to the school during that year Zero disappeared. Can you tell us about that?"

"Yeah, I can. You see, at that time Viletta was a top-notch pilot in the Britannian military, and had recently gained the title of Baroness. She was stationed at this school in order to keep its students safe. People were worried that since this was the Black Knight's base and the sight of their eventual defeat, it would become a target for radicals. But while she was stationed here, Viletta discovered she loved teaching, and as such signed on to stay permanently." This cover story had been decided upon long ago, and while it was partially true, it was just another reminder of the fact that the power of Geass must remain hidden.

Clearing his throat, Ohgi once again picked up the story thread. "Anyways, that horrible year passed, but the oppressed Elevens never lost hope that Zero would return to save them all. An air raid was carried out by the remaining members of the Black Knights on Babel Tower, a hotel and casino notorious for its disgusting treatment of Elevens. A small force snuck in under the guise of an advertising blimp, and smoked out the building. The Britannian Knightmares soon joined the fray, and unfortunately civilians were caught in the crossfire. That was when the miracle happened. Out of nowhere, Zero appeared, giving orders. Kallen told me so many times what it was like, seeing our leader appear like that, knowing we still had a chance. He quickly commanded the remaining Knightmares to set off explosions at the base of the tower, causing it fall into the Chinese Consulate, also killing the current Viceroy. The Chinese Federation thankfully offered the Black Knights asylum, for a short while at least. Then, incredibly, Zero broadcast to the world his intention of reestablishing the United States of Japan. Britannia in turn retaliated with a statement of how they still had many of our members and commanding officers in custody, myself included. This was an opportunity for the Black Knights to find out if the man behind the mask was the true Zero, as only he could possibly pull off an operation of this magnitude. And, remarkably, he did it. Zero rescued us. He was challenged to a duel with Sir Guilford where each combatant could have one weapon. Zero chose just a Knightmare riot shield. He held his own for a while, then on cue the entire platform collapsed. This brought us captives into the hands of the Black Knights, who quickly brought us into the Chinese Federation Consulate. Of course, not everyone was willing to just trust Zero right off the bat. When we asked him what had happened a year before, all that Zero said was that everything he did was for the sake of victory over Britannia. No more, no less. A lot of people were less than satisfied, and demanded to know more. But they realized that Zero was our only hope of actually standing a chance, and backed off. Soon after, Zero went inside and everyone else took to partying. I took the time to get caught up on what had happened while I was in prison. Britannia's goddess of victory, Princess Cornelia, had disappeared, and while that was good news for the Black Knights, it also meant that Britannia's lead strategist and brilliant military commander Schneizel el Britannia was becoming more and more of an issue. I know you all know Schneizel now works for Zero, but at that time he was rampaging across Europe, winning territory left and right. Not only that, but he was sponsoring the production of new Knightmares as well. The new Viceroy was to be arriving any day, and there was some speculation among Elevens that it would be him. But it wasn't. The new Viceroy was Nunnally vi Britannia, now the Empress of the Holy Britannian Empire. Back then, though, she was just a fragile fifteen year old girl who couldn't walk or see. No one knew anything about her, other than the fact that she was a royal princess. Zero attempted to launch a surprise attack during her transport in order to capture her, but it ultimately failed. When Nunnally was formally introduced, she announced something that shocked all of Area 11. She was going to reintroduce the Specially Administrated Zone of Japan. Even more surprising was the fact that Zero accepted her offer. He made a deal that if he delivered one million Japanese to participate in the Specially Administrated Zone, he would be exiled."

This time, it was a boy with red hair who asked a question. "Why would he have himself exiled?" The rest of the class murmured with agreement, as this same question was weighing itself of everyone's mind.

"Good question. You see, Britannia was wary of acting in cooperation with a so-called terrorist, and wanted Zero to hand himself over to them. But at the same time, they were worried that the reinstatement of the SAZ would be negatively received, and have no participation. So, with this deal, Zero would still be allowed to live, although out of Area 11, and the SAZ would have participants. But when the day finally came, it became clear that Zero had outwitted Britannia yet again. Yes, he had indeed brought all one million promised people. But on a signal, every single one of them put on Zero costumes. Since the deal was that Zero was to be exiled, the Britannians had no choice but to let all of the people go into exile. We went to the Chinese Federation on the Iceberg Ship, and indestructible block of ice that never melts. From that point on, the Black Knights along with the million refugees were living under the protection of the Chinese Federation. But Britannia was attempting to expand their empire to even that mighty country. A marriage had been arranged by the High Eunuchs between the Chinese empress Tianzi and First Prince of Britannia Odysseus eu Britannia. As expected of such an important wedding, there was a huge party celebrating it. During it, Zero and Schneizel had a standoff in the form of a chess match. Although there was no winner, it set up the rivalry between the two. On the day of the wedding, however, a coup d'état was staged by Li Xingke, He had been protected from death by the Chinese empress many years ago, and to repay her he had become the Federation's most brilliant warrior, always seeking to protect the empress."

Once again, Blayne leaned over to Keiji. "Got any info on Xingke?"

"Nothing much, but I do remember going to his funeral when I was about six. I think he had some sort of disease. But I do know Mom and Dad had a lot of respect for him." The teacher heard the boys talking, and with a sharp glance, the two teens were quiet once again.

"However, Zero had other plans. He knew that he would gain a significant political power with the empress in his custody, and as such kidnapped her, to put it in simple terms. Because of this, Xingke sided with the High Eunuchs and Britannia to get her back. He used his intellect and battle experience to back us into a tight spot. We were trapped in the Mausoleum of Eighty Eight Emperors, with the combined military forces of Britannia and the Chinese Federation raining down on us ceaselessly. We were considering our best options of escape when Xingke brought out the Shen Hu, a Knightmare created by Rakshata at the same time as the Guren. However, the Shen Hu was much more powerful and advanced than almost any other Knightmare at that time. So powerful, in fact, he was able to take down the Guren and capture Kallen. Because of this, Zero was forced to bring out his secret weapon: the Shinkirō. It was a powerful new Knightmare that had an ultimate defense system. While Zero was doing this to buy time, Diethard was hacking into the Chinese media base. With this, he made the High Eunuch's corruption clear to all of the Chinese people. The Eunuch's were preparing to hand over half of the country's land to Britannia, and in exchange they would receive titles of Britannian nobility. The people were angry with this, as they had a right to be, and rebelled. Seeing this, Schniezel ordered the Britannian forces to retreat, knowing it was a lost cause. Xingke, on the other hand, now had a legitimate reason to follow through on his earlier coup, and took it upon himself to eliminate the Eunuchs. Power was returned to Tianzi, and with that she created an alliance with Zero and the Black Knights. We were lucky, because that meant we gained another important fighter, Xingke, and I really can't tell you how much of a difference he made, especially since Britannia was now in possession of Kallen and the Guren. We swore we would rescue her, but for then we had to keep moving forward. Zero made contact with many of the world's leaders, and together they formed the United Federation of Nations. Lady Kaguya Sumeragi was appointed the head of the UFN, and the first act decided upon was to free Japan from Britannia's control."

Ohgi paused for a moment to allow for any questions. He had purposely skipped over the attack on the Geass Order, as not many people were aware of that particular part of the story, along with the fact that Kaname was ashamed that the Black Knights taken part in that genocide. It had been unnecessary for those people to die, even if they did have the evil of Geass. When no questions were forthcoming, he continued. "The Black Knights had been preparing for this day for months. We had rigged the trains around the settlement with Gefjun Disturbers, and with them we were able to shut down the entire settlement. Using this opportunity, the attack began. Inside the government complex, one of the Black Knight's spies was able to free Kallen and get her to an upgraded version of the Guren, the Guren S.E.I.T.E.N. Eight Elements. It had the best of both Britannian and Japanese technology, making it the strongest Knightmare in existence. She was able to easily incapacitate several of the Knights of Round, Britannia's best warriors. In fact, she nearly destroyed the Lancelot, causing Suzaku Kururugi to use the F.L.E.I.J.A. warhead. F.L.E.I.J.A. was an ultimate bomb created by a Britannian research team. Within a matter of seconds, it could reduce all matter within a set radius to absolutely nothing. Its use was a huge turning point in the war, for it destroyed a vast amount of the government complex. An enormous number of people died in that attack, and a ceasefire was called. As the sun rose, we announced sad news to the world. Zero had been wounded during the fighting, and had died not long after the F.L.E.I.J.A. was fired. But although he, the hero of justice, was gone, we knew what we had to do. In a meeting with Second Prince Schneizel, a truce was called, as the Black Knights now had the tactical advantage with the updated Guren. We would get our Japan back, and the Britannians would leave unharmed. The Black Era was finally over."

"But what about the Demon Emperor?" Blayne couldn't resist asking this question. "I thought his reign started directly after the Black Era ended? Where does he come in?"

Ohgi looked at Blayne. "You're right Blayne; I was just getting to that. You see, a month passed after the F.L.E.I.J.A. tragedy without any statement from the Britannian Emperor Charles zi Britannia, and on top of that Schneizel, the Prime Minister, was gone on business and hadn't made any contact. So when an appearance by the emperor was announced, most of the world watched. But instead of Charles, out walked Lelouch. He had been missing for more than eight years, and everyone was astonished to see him walk out on that stage. They were expecting to see the emperor, not a prince who had disappeared years before. But when he was questioned about what he was doing, all he said was, "Charles zi Britannia, the 98th emperor, no longer lives, and I'm the one who took his life. Therefore, that makes me the next emperor." He was only eighteen at the time."

The exclamations were loud throughout the classroom.

"What!"

"No way! Eighteen? He was the same age as us?"

"I always thought he was older, like in his thirties or something!"

"Damn, he killed his own dad when he was eighteen? How!"

"Quiet, quiet! I would like to continue the lesson, if you don't mind." As he regained the attention of the class, Ohgi prepared himself mentally for the last, most horrible part of the story. He couldn't allow anyone to see his discomposure. "Yes, he was eighteen, the same age as many of you. We still don't know how Emperor Charles was killed, or even where his body is, but it has been proven time and time again that evil knows no bounds, whether it be age or intelligence. And there is no doubt that Lelouch vi Britannia was evil. When he announced that he was taking over the Holy Britannian Empire, the other members of the royal family were outraged, and ordered the guards to kill him. But as the guards were rushing Lelouch, a figure dropped from the ceiling and took out all of the guards in less than a second. It was none other than Suzaku Kururugi, who declared his undying loyalty to Lelouch. As you have most likely guessed, there is a lot of mystery surrounding Lelouch's reign, and Suzaku's motives is one of the things we will most likely never understand. As he was working directly for the emperor, he had no reason to betray him. But still, he joined Lelouch on his quest of madness, under the title of the Knight of Zero. After showing so much power, the rest of the royal court had no choice but to surrender power over to Lelouch and obey what he said. At the beginning of his reign, Lelouch didn't seem evil. In fact, he was the opposite. He completely destroyed the old Britannian system of nobility, and everyone was created equal. The male members of the royal family were forced to join the military, and the females were made to work as maids. He made sure the numbers were no longer discriminated against. Everyone in the world admired him, and they were even calling him a knight for justice, taking the place Zero had in the world now that he was gone. Of course, there were those who were greatly displeased with what Lelouch was doing, and foremost among them were the Knights of the Round. They attempted to attack the royal palace in order to kill Lelouch, but were instead defeated by Suzaku in the Lancelot Albion. This was used to solidify the Demon's position as the "rightful" emperor. And then, he made the most shocking statement possible: the Holy Britannian Empire wanted to become a member of the United Federation of Nations, and the meeting place to decide if it would be allowed to join was none other than this academy. The preparations were made, and the day came. The emperor went into the conference room, and the UFN Supreme Council offered him a choice: as the voting rights were determined by each country's population and Britannia had the largest population in the world, he could either let the captured territories go or limit his vote to 20%. Lelouch chose neither of these. Instead, he took the entire Council hostage by having Suzaku come in the Lancelot and hold everyone at gunpoint."

"Are you serious?"

"How could anyone do that to the Supreme Council? They practically rule the world!"

"Yes, I know it's unthinkable to all of you now, with the UFN having been in power for so long now, but back then things were different," Ohgi once again spoke over the class. "The UFN had been in place for only a few months, and had not yet gained the total respect they now have. Not only that, the world had only just emerged from the chaos of war. But the war still wasn't over yet. Even as Lelouch was forcing the Council to vote under duress, Schniezel made his move against Lelouch. He had fled to the Toromo Agency in Cambodia, a Britannian research branch that severed ties with the Empire after Lelouch came into power. While there, Schneizel had managed to mass-produce F.L.E.I.J.A. weapons even deadlier than the original. With these, he ordered the destruction of the Britannian capitol Pendragon. The entire city and surrounding area were destroyed instantly. But even worse than that was what was used to fire the weapon: the Air Fortress Damocles. It was three kilometers high, with an impenetrable Blaze Luminous shield surrounding it entirely. The Black Knights decided it was necessary to side with Schneizel and help fight against Lelouch, now that he had crossed such a line as taking the members of the Council hostage. And so an epic battle started. The Damocles was firing F.L.E.I.J.A. left and right, destroying huge swaths of enemy Knightmares. The Black Knights seemed to be gaining the advantage, and we were celebrating. But Lelouch had prepared for us; he may have been a mad demon, but he was a genius nonetheless. He had rigged Mt. Fuji with a Hadron blast, and detonated it right when our forces were nearing the mountain. The resulting eruption completely decimated all the ground forces, both of the Black Knights and Britannia, as well as a good portion of the flight-enabled Knightmares. That man… he didn't care if he had to sacrifice his own men in order to ensure his victory.

"This was where the battle truly began. Kallen and Suzaku, the Ace of the Black Knights and the Knight of Zero, fought until their energy fillers completely ran out. Both of them were incredible warriors. In the end, though, Kallen was just a bit better. She destroyed the Lancelot Albion, and in the process killed Suzaku Kururugi. Kururugi really wasn't a bad man, I must say in retrospect. He just… had bad choice in who he pledged his loyalty to. He certainly had a hard life, and I do mourn his death, as he could have done great things for the world if only he had changed his ideals. But I digress. The battle seemed to once again be going in the Black Knight's favor, but the battle with the Knightmares wasn't the only battle going on. There was one inside Damocles, the most important battle of all. And that was the battle that was lost. Somehow, Lelouch was able to gain possession of the Damocles key, and the F.L.E.I.J.A. weapons. He had forced Schneizel to surrender to him, and, in effect, now ruled the world.

"The next two months were terrible, and everyone lived in terror. Everyone Lelouch thought had betrayed him was imprisoned and scheduled to be executed. If he heard even a rumor of someone speaking out against him, the person's entire family was killed. If it was fact, the person and their family were killed. The soil at the execution grounds became permanently red with blood. As Pendragon had been destroyed by Schneizel, Lelouch needed a new base, and he chose Japan, because it was the sight of his victory and to stomp any more rebellion out of the people. Everyone was terrified- there really is no other word - for their friends, family, neighbors, strangers, and themselves. Then came the day of our execution. Once again, I was about to be killed. But this time, I had no hope. No one did. It was required for everyone in Tokyo to come watch the execution, barring the sick and extremely elderly. There were six armed Knightmares escorting us, as well as Lelouch. He would be carrying out the killings personally. He was seated on a throne at the top of a giant float. The thing was like one big, macabre parade. Then, a miracle happened. No, it was more than a miracle. There, at the top of a hill, was Zero. Standing, ready once again to defy authority and save the world. I don't know if it was the same Zero, or simply some stand-in; but he did it. He evaded fire from all six of the Knightmares, jumped over the guards' heads, and stood before the Demon Emperor. Lelouch drew his gun, but Zero knocked it out of his hand. And then, without pomp or ceremony, he stabbed Lelouch through the heart. The two of them seemed to exchange word; to this day no one knows what they said. Lelouch reached up and touched Zero's mask, who pulled his sword out of Lelouch's chest, allowing the madman to slide down his own elaborate ramp. He landed next to his little sister, Nunnally. The entire crowd was silent. Not a single sound was heard, not a baby or a bird. Suddenly, everything burst into motion. Nunnally, seeing her brother dying, let out a bloodcurdling cry of anguish. She was sobbing uncontrollably, screaming for her big brother not to leave her. The few revolutionaries who had not been captured by Lelouch ran out of a nearby building, declaring, 'Lelouch the demon is dead! Free his prisoners!' The crowd broke into cheers, and a celebration around the world began.

"A year passed quickly, and the world began to change just as fast. I was named Prime Minister, Nunnally became Empress. The people of the world as a whole began to realize their former folly. Together, they had been thorough the worst experiences possible. War, they realized, was pointless, and governments all over the world took the money that had once funded violence and instead put it towards solving hunger and homelessness. Changes were made even here at Ashford. Take a look around this room." The students did so, wondering what Ohgi was getting at. "As you know, Ashford Academy is funded by the Ashford Foundation and the noble Ashford family. During the occupation, only Britannian students were allowed to attend. In fact, when Suzaku Kururugi first came here, he was shunned and tormented by many of the other students. Now, there are students of all nationalities here: Britannian, Japanese, Chinese, European, and African, just to name a few."

The students were completely silent. The entire story seemed almost like a fiction book, something that could never happen in real life. They sat spellbound as the man finished the final part of his presentation. "Three years after the defeat of the Demon Emperor, the UFN made a ruling that all Knightmare research be halted. Knightmares frames were in the thirteenth generation, and it was decided that they were getting too dangerous for their own good, as many former supporters of Lelouch were taking it upon themselves to perform acts of terrorism. Knightmares could still be produced for the exclusive use of the Black Knights, but were not allowed to have any new technology. Of course, there were still Knightmares built illegally, but the terrorist attacks decreased by a great amount. That's really the last major effect of the Black Era. I want you to know, I only touched the surface of everything that happened back then. I understand you will be going into more detail over the next few weeks?" Ohgi said, looking back at the teacher. As she nodded, he finished, "I leave it to you, then."

The teacher stepped forward and spoke to her class. "The best way for you to understand everything you just heard is to speak about it amongst yourselves. I want you all to go now and discuss with your classmates about what you learned. Class dismissed!"

~o0o~

In the middle of a rundown neighborhood in Tokyo, a lone man entered his apartment. The neighbors had long since learned to stop wondering about the strange, black-haired young man who lived in apartment 2A. They ignored the fact that even though he had been living there for ten years and never seemed to get a day older. They ignored the ridiculously expensive furniture that would occasionally be delivered. In fact, if anyone asked them, they would lie and say no one even lived in 2A. And they would never, under any circumstances, reveal that the man called himself Lelouch.

As Lelouch Lamperouge entered his apartment, he was grinning. Finally, his plan could be put into action. There were only a few details left to be straightened out. He sat down and grabbed one of his numerous cell phones, quickly calling the only number saved in the device's memory.

"Well, well," a female voice answered. "It sure has been a long time since you called me. It's been, what, four years now?"

"Oh, come on. I know that's what you wanted, C.C. You wanted to travel the world as an ordinary human, doing ordinary human things. In fact, I bet you're an old hag by now, now that you can age."

"Lelouch..." She sighed. "Whatever. I suppose it's almost time, considering that you're calling me."

"Yes. I've found the perfect candidate. Actually, he reminds me a little bit of myself."

"Great. We definitely need another egomaniac added to our happy little band."

"I can practically taste the sarcasm."

"So what's his name?"

"You've heard of him. Blayne McAlistor."

"Oh, so when you said he reminded you of yourself, you meant the sister complex."

"…."

"Hmph. Just getting even."

"Fine. I'll leave that comment ignored for now. In any case, try to get back here as soon as you can."

"Alright, but no promises on how fast it will be. It may be another few weeks."

"Just get here. Where are you, anyway?"

There was a long silence before finally the woman spoke. "Italy," she said, and hung up.

Lelouch allowed a smile to form. "_Italy, huh? Figures."_

**Hoooooly shizmonkeys, that was long. Wow. Once again, I'm sorry for the uber long delay in getting this out there. Be glad, though, because I already have chapter three written. I just need to type and upload it. Anyway, review, review, review, please! And if something doesn't make sense, just let me know so I can fix it!**


	3. Power

**I'm a horrible person. I haven't updated this in SO FREAKIN' LONG. But you all know that… I'M SORRY! I was all ready to type it up and post, and what do you know, my brain suddenly decides that it hates what I've written and makes me rewrite it all. But that's no excuse. So, I'll stop talking now and just let you wonderful people read in peace.**

**Disclaimer: Nope, still not mine. **

**Dedication: I'm normally not someone to dedicate my work, and I know he wouldn't have given a rat's ass about someone dedicating a fanfiction to him, but whatever. Carson, you made such a huge impact on everyone's life. Fly high.**

Chapter Three: Power

"How? How did this happen?" Blayne whispered. His life had come crashing down. After the history lesson, he, Keiji, and a group of friends had all gone to a café to talk about what they had heard.

"I really can't believe all that happened," Keiji said. "I mean, I know the call Zero the knight for justice, but some the things he did were just amazing! It's like he isn't human, or has some crazy superpower! I still want to know if the Zero we have now is the same one as before, though. Dad did say he died in the second Battle for Tokyo."

"Even so, Zero is Zero," a girl named Amy entered the conversation. "Does it really matter who Zero is under the mask? They never knew who the original Zero was, so even if we know who this one is, it still wouldn't answer the question. As long as Zero acts as Zero and keeps the peace, it doesn't matter who he is."

"True," Keiji replied. "We don't _need_ to know who Zero is it's just that Zero has no need to hide his face. We're in a time of peace now, and he's definitely not going to be shunned or anything. It doesn't matter anymore what race he is, or if he's disfigured, or anything of that sort!"

Blayne, who had been sitting quietly until that point spoke up then. "But that's just it. Zero stands for all the good and justice that everyone has in them and deserves in turn. His name, his face, they just don't matter. He could be anyone, just as long as he's there."

"That may be true, but I still think there's something a little off about that story. Like Dad wasn't telling the full truth. But whether or not it's because he doesn't know or doesn't want us to know is the question."

"Whatever, guys," another boy chimed in. "All this philosophical crap is making me sick. Now what about Lelouch? That was some crazy shit, neh?"

At the mention of Lelouch's name, Blayne froze. It brought the memory of the strange encounter even more to the forefront of this mind. It couldn't have been Lelouch in the alley that day, because Lelouch was dead. He had been purged twenty years before by Zero the messiah. Besides, it had been dark, and Blayne hadn't really gotten a good look at the strange, black haired man.

He stood up abruptly, interrupting the conversation. "I'm not feeling well. I think I'm gonna head home. See ya!" And with that, Blayne ran off.

As soon as he got back to the Ohgi residence, Villetta called him into the kitchen. "Blayne, a letter came from your parents today," she said gently. "I didn't read it, but I would appreciate it if you told me what they say. After all, they are my friends."

"Um, yeah, alright." Blayne took the letter, unwilling to open it. He could feel the tenuous balance he had struck beginning to tip. His whole future depended on one little package of paper and ink. In his room, Blayne slowly turned the envelope over in his hands, and opened it. The letter was written in his mother's delicate handwriting.

_Blayne,_

_How is your stay in Japan? Say hello to the Ohgi's for me, and tell Villetta I may be coming to visit sometime. Unfortunately, things have not gotten much better between your father and I, and as such, we are going through with the divorce. I really just can't stand being around that man anymore. _

_To make things worse, we were notified today that the McAlistor's are no longer part of the Britannian nobility. I'm ashamed to admit that this was the result of a screaming match between your father and I at a society event. Blayne, I must apologize to you. We have not been good parents to you as of late, but ever since Annobel died, things have been hard for us too. Please try to understand._

_As of right now, almost all of our personal accounts have been frozen in order to stop either your father or I from stealing any money. However, your personal account is still yours to use freely. I'm just telling you this so you don't expect any more deposits from us. I love you always, and I'll try to come to Japan sometime in the future once the divorce is settled. _

_Love,_

_Mother_

"Bullshit," Blayne muttered to himself. "Utter bullshit. She shouldn't be making excuses." He noticed a second piece of paper behind the letter from his mother. Although, piece of paper was a bit generous, it was more like a scrap torn off a notepad.

**Don't screw up and make things even worse for us. **

That was it. One sentence, written in his father's barely legible chickenscratch. And those ten words sent Blayne over the edge. He was pissed. Shoving the letter in his pocket, Blayne stormed out of the house, ignoring Villetta's worried "What's wrong?"

He had wandered the streets for what seemed like hours, feeling the rage boil up in him. Who were they to decide his fate? He glared at everyone, just daring them to come close and pick a fight. He wanted a fight. He wanted to punch someone, make their lives as wrong as his.

All of which led Blayne to his current situation. His roaming had once again gotten him lost in the streets of Tokyo. "Dammit. Dammit, dammit, dammit," Blayne muttered, punching the side of building.

"Now, now. Don't go losing your temper."

Blayne whipped around, looking to see who had spoken. "You," he growled. "Who the hell are you?" It was the same person from two weeks before. "Why do you keep following me?"

"I told you, didn't I? I've been watching you, and you're the perfect candidate to receive ultimate power," the strange teen smirked, seemingly amused.

"Yeah, you said that. But why, in the name of all things holy, should I believe you?"

"Why shouldn't you?"

Blayne paused, taken aback by the unexpected reply. He gave a hard stare, directly into the other person's eyes. He had known it. The nagging feeling in his gut had been correct. Standing in front of him, impossibly, was Lelouch vi Britannia, alive and well. "Maybe because you murdered missions of people and destroyed the world."

"What are you talking about?" the stranger replied, feigning innocence.

"You know damn well what I'm talking about. Lelouch vi Britannia. That's your name, isn't it?"

"What's in a name," Lelouch mused. "Is it a person's soul, their identity? Or is it simply a collection of letters, random sounds come together that we simply associate with someone because we don't know their true nature? True, for a time that was my name, the name the whole world knew and feared. But tell me: why is this relevant? What have you got to lose?"

Blayne swallowed. What _did_ he have to lose? With a jolt, the answer came to him. Nothing. He had nothing to lose. Annobel was gone, and his parents were as good as. He didn't give a damn about nobility. He didn't have any particularly close friends besides Keiji. So why not? He took a deep breath. "Fine. I accept your offer. When do I get this 'incredible power'?"

"Tonight. Meet me at this address, at this time." Lelouch pulled a slip of paper from his pocket and handed it to Blayne.

"You seem to have anticipated my answer," Blayne commented.

"Of course. I know you better than you do yourself." And with those ominous words and a smile, Lelouch was gone.

~oOo~

Blayne looked at the seemingly abandoned warehouse. He double-checked the address; it seemed strange, but this was the place where Lelouch wanted to meet. He shrugged, and entered the building.

"So you made it. Good. I fixed the lock on that door so it only opened in a three minute interval. You passed the test." Lelouch smiled. "Very well. I promised you power, did I not? Come here." And with the delicacy and caution of a hare approaching a sleeping wolf, Blayne approached Lelouch.

A red light began emanating from Lelouch's chest, illuminating the darkness of the warehouse. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Blayne registered the fact that the storeroom was filled with giant crates, filled with who-knows-what. But the majority of his thoughts were focused on what was happening before him. Lelouch reached out his hand, and placed it firmly on Blayne's forehead, almost pushing him back. And suddenly, he wasn't in the warehouse anymore.

Of course, on some level Blayne knew he was still standing on the cracked cement floor, but for all intents and purposes, he was no longer there. He traveled down a tunnel of glowing blue light, only to end up in an endless white space. There in front of him was Lelouch, refracted a thousand times, constantly shifting, changing. "Good, you're here," Lelouch said. In this space, which seemed both enclosed and endless, his voice was larger, louder, echoing. A voice of power. "You are about to receive the power of the King, Geass. It will both bless you and condemn you. But the path you walk will be forged by you alone; your fate is in your own hands." Lelouch reached out and touched Blayne's chest, right above his heart.

And then Blayne was soaring. A feeling, indescribable, filled him. If it was, then it also was not. It was as if every nerve and cell, every fiber of his being, was being razed and burned, but Blayne was unable to decide if it was painful or not. He saw snatches, glimpses: a swirling mass of red and orange with a strange symbol upon it; a mass of people chanting a word- Zero- over and over again; Knightmares firing at each other and exploding.

Then, as suddenly as it had started, it stopped. He was back in his own body, standing in the warehouse. However, everything felt… new. Changed. Blayne was now aware of a power within him, making him feel like he could do anything, destroy anything. He was unable to tell if the power had been there all along, and he had only just become aware of it, or if it was something new, now merged with his very soul.

What had felt like hours in the strange other dimension had been merely seconds in the real world. Blayne looked at the person before him. "That… Was that…?"

"Yes. That was Geass. What just happened was essentially forcibly induced meditation, where you delved into the deepest depths of your mind and soul. That allowed you awaken the power and obtain Geass."

"So, now what? What do I have to do in return? Be your slave, obey your every command?"

"Oh, no," Lelouch laughed. "Nothing of that sort. But that doesn't mean you can't still be useful to me. To complete your part of the contract, you must help me fulfill my greatest wish. Although, you will certainly be better off in the long run if you follow my orders when I give them."

"What is this wish?" Blayne was instantly suspicious. What could Lelouch the Demon possibly want? Revenge against the world?

"Let me just say I have some unfinished business." Lelouch smiled a cryptic smile, like whoever had wronged him was going to pay. Big time. Blayne was beginning to wonder just what he had gotten himself into. But now, he knew he could deal with it, whatever it was. Then a thought came to him, a question that had been nagging at him, but had been forgotten in the excitement.

"How are you here? How are you alive? Weren't you killed by Zero twenty years ago? What the hell really happened?"

Lelouch sighed. He had known this question would be asked at some point. "That's irrelevant right now. But just know this: what Kaname Ohgi told you is only part of the truth. That was the official story, and there are parts he didn't tell you; some because they have been purposely omitted, and some because they are simply unknown."

Blayne glared at him. "That still doesn't answer my question."

"Tell me this first, then. What do you know about me?"

This was the last thing Blayne expected to hear. He said, somewhat shakily, "Um… you were born in Britannia, and were the eleventh prince. You disappeared for eleven years, before coming back as the 99th emperor. You caused misery around the world, so Zero killed you. But you didn't die, and now you're here."

"You're ignorant," Lelouch stated bluntly. "You think, just because you have that single scrap of knowledge, you can correctly deduce everything. Why don't you try to figure out what happened during the years I 'disappeared'. By the way, you're the Ashford student council Vice President, aren't you?" Blayne mutely nodded. "How ironic," Lelouch laughed. "But those things are the least of your concerns right now."

"What are you-?" Blayne started to say. But he was cut off by a loud shout from behind, causing him to jump. He looked behind him, and inexplicably there was a member of the Black Knights. He looked at Lelouch, wondering what was going on.

"Oh, didn't I tell you? This is a storage warehouse for the Black Knights. A guard comes by every half hour. So, Blayne. What are you going to do?"

And despite his instinctual feeling that he was about to be riddled with bullets, Blayne knew exactly what to do. Somehow, he understood the general nature of the power he had received minutes before, as well as how to utilize it. He made eye contact with the man, relaxed the restraint he was holding on his power, and felt it surge through him.

~oOo~

Black Knights recruit John Grady Cole had recently been stationed in Japan, and had been given the job of night patrol around the warehouses. It was well known to be one of the worst jobs, but he was happy to take it, because he wanted to serve the world in any way he could. So when he saw two strangers standing in the middle of one of the warehouses, he immediately sprang into action, even though it was just two teenagers who were probably pulling a prank. With a shout, he called their attention. He saw the blond one turn to his friend, and heard the last words the kid with black hair said to his companion. "What are you going to do?"

At this, John Grady was thoroughly confused. He was armed with a semi-automatic machine gun, and the two teens had nothing. Then the blond one turned his head and looked directly into John Grady's eyes.

From the stacks of crates behind the two intruders came a fully functional, and highly armed, Knightmare. For John Grady, who had only ever seen Knighmares in training sessions, seeing a highly dangerous and hostile giant robot coming directly at him was too much. He dropped to the ground in a dead faint.

~oOo~

Seeing the man drop, Blayne grinned and slowly reigned in his Geass. He knew, of course, that the Knightmare had not been real; merely a wraith conjured up from his imagination for the Black Knights member to see. For that was his power, his Geass: he could make anyone see what he wanted them to, whether it was their biggest fear or the thing they loved most, or even nothing at all. That was the power of illusion.

**Since I know there were a lot of questions about this, I'm going to clear it up right here. C.C. gave Lelouch her code before he was 'killed'. I know it makes more sense for him to have taken Charles' code, but I need it this way for the plot. Yes, I actually do have a plot semi planned out. I know, right? Oh yeah, I also don't own John Grady Cole. I just like to make bad things happen to him… But anyway, summer is here, so I actually will be able to update sooner than half a year! (I really am sorry about that.) Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed, favorite, followed, or even read this. You guys motivate me to write the best I can! So don't forget to review!**


End file.
